St John the Baptist, Valentia
SUNDAY 24 DECEMBER 2023
O God, our refuge and strength, the author of all godliness; Be ready, we beseech thee, to hear the devout prayers of thy Church; and grant that those things which we ask in faith may be given to us according to Your will; through Jesus Christ our Lord.
“Do as I say, not as I do”. The mantra of hypocritical leaders through the ages. It is important to note that Jesus makes a clear distinction between the righteous observance of the Law and the self-important practice of the Pharisees. They have authority vested in them according to tradition, and they are responsible for guiding the religious life of the people. Jesus makes it clear that people must follow their instruction. He endorses Temple worship and prayer traditions, such as Phylacteries to act as scriptural guides, and the fringes on their ritual clothes as reminders of the Commandments as prescribed in the Book of Numbers (15:37-40).
But He is scathing about the way in which the Pharisees themselves make ostentatious gestures of holiness without any substance or obedience to the significance of the Law in their own daily lives. Their faith is superficial in the extreme – they parade the outward signs of holiness, without there being any inward belief. They are power-seeking politicians, out for themselves alone. The gospel passage above is merely an introduction to a list of the accusations that follow. Later in the chapter, He calls them not just hypocrites, but also blind guides, a brood of vipers, the descendants of those who murdered the prophets and who will continue to do so.
And when He tells people that they are not all be served, but instead to be servants themselves, He simply goes too far. He is undermining the whole foundation of Temple hierarchy, with them insisting on being paid deference and using titles like ‘Rabbi’ as a badge of rank. Not really any wonder, then that they will double their efforts to get rid of Him.Previous Posts
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Blessed Lord, who caused all holy Scriptures to be written for our learning: Help us to hear them, to read, mark, learn and inwardly digest them that, through patience, and the comfort of your holy word, we may embrace and for ever hold fast the blessed hope of everlasting life, which you have given us in our Saviour Jesus Christ.
Holy God, you have called witnesses from every nation and revealed your glory in their lives. Grant to us the same faith and love that, following their example, we may be sustained by their fellowship and rejoice in their triumph; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
What Hallowtide, or ‘Hallowmas’ is: A ‘Triduum’, or ‘Three days.’
Beginning on All Hallow’s Eve: the evening before All Hallows day – a vigil of prayer, fasting and preparation for the feast.
All Hallows, or ‘All Saints’: a time of feasting and celebration of the victory and life won through Christ and those Saints and Martyrs who have kept the faith and through whom His church has been built.
All Souls: A day to remember all who have gone before, especially friends and family, with gifts of apples and ‘soulcakes’ (usually filled with sweet spices and fruit, decorated with the sign of the cross before baking) being given as alms.
Hallowtide celebrates the light of Christ that will support and shine through the dark days of Winter.
What Hallowmas is not:
Samhain: a Pagan religious festival and in many Celtic traditions, New Year’s day. While not sharing their belief, we respect those who are sincere.
As opposed to:
Halloween: An American import during which people make shedloads of money by selling tat, normally made of unrecyclable and indestructible plastic, and during which children are encouraged to beg for money with menaces to buy tooth-rotting sweets made of 100% artificial ingredients.
And worse, it has increasingly become an excuse for an insidious excuse for darkness and propagation of evil. Violent and horrific media encourages naïve people to believe that ‘it’s only a bit of fun’ when it plainly isn’t.
Experience shows, however, that addressing the above directly isn’t all that effective – if people have no appreciation from a Christian perspective, they dismiss our opinion without understanding what we say. Instead, the way to defeat the darkness is to be the light that darkness can never overcome. And love is the vehicle to shine that light.
Hallowmas is a season we should not ignore, but instead celebrate as a festival of light, in the beauty of Autumn colours and enjoying a time for creation to rest in peace. Halloween, in modern times, has become the embodiment of darkness. As Christians, we must have no part of it.
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Almighty God, whose Holy Spirit equips your Church with a rich variety of gifts: Grant us so to use them that, living the gospel of Christ and eager to do your will, we may share with the whole creation in the joys of eternal life;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
You’d have thought by now that they would realise that they aren’t ever going to succeed in tricking Jesus into saying something that would get Him in bother.
Is it lawful to pay taxes to the Emperor? Answer ‘No’ and they could accuse Him in front of the Roman authorities; ‘Yes’ and He can be accused of collaboration with the occupying forces and denying the Law. When He doesn’t fall for it and turns the tables on the hypocritical and clueless Pharisees, they are ‘amazed’. Just what did they expect?
But in some sense, the question appears to be a reasonable one – if we accept that the two are mutually incompatible. But they aren’t. So we resolve that question in the same way as did our Lord. Yes, if we are asked whether we conform to the World’s values and laws, either answer could get us in hot water. ‘Yes’ denies our faith in God’s overreaching authority – ‘No’ accuses us of not engaging with the real world. So we don’t answer the divisive leading question. Instead , we realise that some taxes are necessary. We live in a civilised society, and laws are required to support order and safety. Only when those laws conflict with living in the Gospel is there incompatibility. And then there is only one choice we can make, irrespective of the cost.
When the world lives in Christ, it’s laws are true and just. When it doesn’t, they are not, and we must reject them. There can be no compromise. From Stephen the Deacon through Thomas àBecket, Dietrich Bonhoeffer and the thousands today living in countries where Christian faith is illegal, the history of Christianity is one of resolute women and men living the Gospel without fear in the face of retribution, persecution and threat. As must we.
Lord of all Compassion, we pray during these difficult days for all the peoples of the Holy Land.
May the gentleness of Christ prevail through the pain of conflict and mistrust,
May the presence of Christ heal the wounds that are inflicted,
May the hope and courage of Christ be with all who are desperate and dying,
May the truth of Christ enlighten those in positions of authority to seek new ways of living that foster harmony and mutual respect, and
May the peace of Christ dwell deep within the hearts of all in this the Land of the Holy One.
We ask this and all our prayers through the same, Jesus Christ, whose way is the most excellent way of love.
Amen
Revd Canon David Longe, former Chaplain to the Archbishop in Jerusalem
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O God our Father without you we are not able to please you;
Mercifully grant that your Holy Spirit may in all things direct and rule our hearts; through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Sounds a bit cruel to me- poor guy couldn’t even afford a coat and he gets thrown out on the street. I can understand the reaction to the refusal of the invited glitterati – they consider themselves too busy with their own priorities to be bothered turning up at a wedding breakfast bunfight given for a minor royalty who they probably don’t know. But you’d have thought that ordinary people would jump at being offered the chance for a free meal, and most of them are, except the coatless one.
But like a lot of situations, there is more going on than initially meets the eye. The first invitees – you might call them the ‘chosen ones’ – wouldn’t want to have the King’s son imposed on them. If they accept the invitation, it would be a declaration of loyalty and allegiance that they aren’t prepared to offer. They think they eat pretty well already on their mega -processed unwholesome diet. Shame really – they don’t realise what the consequence will be of their dismissal of the invitation. It ain’t going to end up good.
On the other hand, the poor and hungry on the street are presented with a life-saving opportunity – all they have to do is accept and demonstrate loyalty by putting on the robe they are offered, and a feast awaits them.
But here’s the point of the story, and the reason why the result of refusal is banishment. You see, they aren’t expected to own a robe already; the cost has already been paid for them. A robe is waiting for them at the King’s door, and the feast beckons. To want the feast but not the submission to the King’s authority isn’t the way it works.
Whoever we are – even unto this last -Jesus asks us to dine with Him. He has bought us the entrance fee. All He asks is that we accept Him as Lord.
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